Europe's first close-up image of Mars

ESA.int (Mars Express site) ^ | 01/19/04

[witnesstothefall]

Spectacular Mars pic at:

http://www.esa.int/export/externals/images/esa-MediaReleaseHRSC_FINAL.jpg

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Look at that Crevice,.. canyon!!!!!:

Mars Pictures

[finnman69]

http://www.esa.int/export/externals/images/esa-MediaReleaseHRSC_FINAL.jpg


I thought it was a closeup of Keith Richards lungs?

[MHGinTN]

The more I see of Mars photos, the more I wonder if Mars had a water moon that exploded from an impact with a meteor, splattering the Martian surface (southern hemisphere, mostly) with massive amount of water!

[polemikos]

So England, America, and Europe all had Mars programs going on virtually simultaneously?

[witnesstothefall]

Yes

[John H K]

So England, America, and Europe all had Mars programs going on virtually simultaneously?

The Beagle 2 was carried to Mars attached to the European Mars Express; it dropped off when Mars Express arrived for its (failed) landing.

The Japanese sent an orbiter to Mars at the same time, but unfortunately it was trashed by solar flares.

[razorback-bert]

Looks like Utah, did they really go to Mars?

[ErnBatavia]

I thought it was a closeup of Keith Richards lungs?

OR Susan Estrich's vocal cords...

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

It is certainly a strange planet.

It is hard to imagine a geologic process that would generate such incredible features with no plate tectonics!

[polemikos]

Thanks.

[UCANSEE2]

One looks at a landscape which has been predominantly shaped by the erosional action of water. Millions of cubic kilometres of rock have been removed, and the surface features seen now such as mountain ranges, valleys, and mesas, have been formed.

In the news, Mars Rover searches for water on Mars,as water could prove there is life on Mars.

Cameras on board the Rover show nothing but huges streches of landscape covered with 'rocks'.

Where is the life on Mars?

Maybe the rocks are the life on Mars.

[MHGinTN]

Something with a whole lot of H₂O slammed into Mars, IMHO.

[r9etb]

The Japanese sent an orbiter to Mars at the same time, but unfortunately it was trashed by solar flares.

The Japanese have had their problems with solar flares -- earlier this year they lost one GEO satellite, and another went into a safe mode, to the effects of the huge flares back in October.

[HHFi]

This amazing European Mars probe has such a good camera, it can pick up sharp, clear images of all the American probes down on the surface.

[John H K]

They need to hire a bunch of Toyota guys for their space program :-)

They indeed have had a lot of problems, not just flares, but booster explosions.

I have a friend who is a Ford engineer, (and works with Japanese Mazda engineers, who are very good) but all of them regard Toyota with awe.

[Calvin Locke]

...all had Mars programs going on virtually simultaneously?

The practical window for sending craft to Mars occurs about every two years. Don't remember the length of the window,
but the "traffic" from the last opportunity is attempting to come to fruition.

[FourtySeven]

I guess the Beagle2 is pretty much considered toast now huh?

[hosepipe]

looks wind erosion not water erosion...

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

It mirrors water erosion on this planet!